Of Wrist Wraps and Late Night Chats
by LoreilDarksky00
Summary: It's the night after the Master Class in Glorio City, and Serena finds that Satoshi is less dense than she'd previously thought. But it's thanks to that, that she somehow she manages to make some progress in, as Millefeui called it, THAT department. Or, Serena is up front with the boy she likes about Yoshio's offer, and her answer. She also receives an an answer she can live with.


Gentle calls and chirping from bug Pokemon filled Serena's ears as she sat next to her Pokemon that night. The four of them gazed up at the moon.

She had fought her way up to the finals in the Master Class, facing Elle head on with everything she'd had. Losing didn't sting as much as one might expect, not after she'd realized just what Elle had that she was missing. Now that she knew, she had a path she could grasp with her own hands towards her dream.

Losing might not have stung as much as it should… but it still stung. She had wanted so badly to win…

Yashio's offer echoed in her mind. On some level, she already knew her answer. She had told the older woman that she lacked experience, which was true; just not the experience the woman was probably thinking of.

Soft footsteps behind her alerted her just before Satoshi spoke. "What's up? Wrist hurting?"

She glanced up at him, only slightly started. "Oh, not really. There was just something I needed to think about."

"Ah, I see. Your next performance, maybe?" He guessed cheerfully, taking a seat on the steps next to her. Pikachu balanced easily on his shoulder as he settled.

Serena could have just gone with it, said 'sure, something like that', but she didn't. Falling silent for a moment, she let out a slow sigh.

"Yashio-san offered to train me to be a better performer," she admitted, eyes losing focus as she remembered the woman's words. "Which is a huge opportunity. But it's not the one I feel is right."

When she chanced a peek at his face, she realized that even he knew what a big deal the offer was. His mouth was hanging open in shock as he stared at her.

Words fell out of her mouth almost without her thinking about it. "I have this feeling that if I go with her, I would get better, yes, but only for a little bit. You know, everything I've experienced on this journey with you has given me the strength to perform. All the places I've been to, the things I've done and seen… My memories with all my friends and my precious partners," she looked to her Pokemon with a soft smile, "are what help me give my best during Tripokalons. If I went with Yashio-san now, I wouldn't be able to make more memories like that. Sure, my Pokemon would be with me, but I get the feeling we would be _told_ how to perform… not find ourselves and our own performance. I'm not going to take the offer, I know this. But… it's such an amazing thing, to be recognized by someone so skilled. I don't want to burn any bridges, you know? But if I say no, I don't think I'll ever get the chance again."

"Serena…" Satoshi didn't seem to know what to say.

She shook her head, realizing just how much she'd said as she forced out a laugh. "Aha, sorry. I didn't mean to dump all that on you. You can forget I said anything."

"No, it's fine, I just… I didn't know you had gotten so much out of traveling with me. I'm glad," he admitted, doing that thing where he rubbed a finger under his nose. She didn't know why she found it so cute, and fought back a blush. "And I think I can understand, a bit. You don't want to waste such an important opportunity, even though you need to make your own opportunities."

Sighing in relief, she nodded. "Yeah…"

"You should just tell her what you told me," he shrugged. "If I understood it, I'm sure Yashio-san will."

She twisted her head to stare at him with a raised eyebrow. "What do you mean by _that_?"

"I know I'm a bit dense sometimes." He actually looked a bit downcast as he said it, looking down the steps into the shadows. There was something behind it, like a bad memory he was starting to sink into.

Opening her mouth, she paused. Simple denying it probably wouldn't banish that dark look from his eyes. Frowning, she finally shook her head, and then met the eyes of her Pokemon in a silent message. Understanding, they headed back for the Pokemon Center as she turned back to her friend and crush. Somehow Satoshi didn't seem to notice that Pikachu followed them.

"You're brilliant with the things that matter, Satoshi," she said firmly. "You come through for the ones you care about when it matters, so I think its fine if you don't always get things. You take things at your own pace, and are always so optimistic, always facing your next challenge with everything you have. I really admire that about you!"

"You think so?" He eyed her for a moment, before his usual grin returned, eyes brightening in the expression she loved so much. "Thanks, Serena."

"No, thank _you_ ," she giggled. "For listening when I needed to vent a bit." She went to push herself to her feet, about to say they should go back, but forgot about her injured wrist. She pushed off hard with it, and instantly dropped back to the steps with a strangled cry as pain shot through the injury.

Satoshi immediately moved closer, reaching out to steady her. "Are you okay?!"

Wincing, she nodded. "Yeah, I just forgot about my wrist and put too much weight on it…"

"Let me see." His hands were gentle as he pulled her arm closer. She flinched when he barely brushed a finger against the bandages, and he sighed. "I think you may have made it a bit worse... You need to be careful with it so it can heal properly."

Just now realizing how close he was, Serena felt her face heat up. "S-sorry. I'll be more careful."

"What's wrong? Your face is all red."

 _The moon was really pretty tonight_ , she thought distantly as she swallowed hard. _It's peaceful and quiet, and we're alone…_

"Nothing's wrong," she managed to say without stuttering, mentally congratulating herself. "It's just a blush."

His eyebrows furrowed, confusion etched in his expression. "Why would you be blushing?"

"Because right now you're close enough to kiss and I have a crush on you," she blurted out, and then slapped her uninjured hand over her mouth in horror. Eye wide, she felt frozen in place as he stared at her, still holding her wrist.

"A… crush," he repeated slowly, as if he'd never spoken the word before. To her shock, there was a little bit of red spreading across his own face. "You… have a crush on me?"

She hesitated, but she'd already said it once. Serena knew him well enough by now to know that there would likely never be a super romantic confession involving him, so she tried to just… keep it casual. _Dense boys panic if they get pressured with the things they don't understand_ , she had thought once. Now was the time to keep that in mind.

"I've actually liked you since Professor Oak's summer camp," she murmured, breaking eye contact and focusing on the steps beneath her feet. "And then we met again, and it just… got stronger from there. You don't have to say anything, really, I know it's probably way out of the blue for you."

She was doing so good, she knew it, and she tried to keep it that way. She couldn't panic now, it would make things so awkward…

"I… had no idea," Satoshi admitted slowly.

She giggled at that. "I know. It's okay."

He made a sound of pure confusion, causing her to look back up at him when he spoke. "It is?"

Taking pity on his situation, Serena made a choice. "Yup! It's okay. It's like I said before, you're brilliant when it comes to the things that matter. Yeah, I really, really like you, but you know what? I'm still your friend, and I still get to have tons of fun with you, Clemont and Bonnie every day. Don't feel pressured to respond or anything. We can just keep going just like we've been doing."

If anything, he looked more confused. "But don't girls want guys to… I dunno, say they like them back? I don't really get it, but I've heard girls talk about it… I don't know much about girls," he whined when she began to laugh.

Somehow, talking to him like this, even when it wasn't anywhere near what she'd dreamed or hoped, was better than anything else. She was telling him her feelings without freaking out, and she felt much closer to him than she had before.

"Satoshi," she said after taking a moment to catch her breath. "It _would_ make me happy if you liked me back, but just because I like you, doesn't mean you _have_ to like me back the same way. If you don't, or you don't know, that's okay. But… if you ever find that you do… it would be great if you told me."

He thought about it for a moment, then nodded. "Alright." He got to his feet, helping her up, and turned back towards the Pokemon Center. "We should get some sleep, then. And Serena?" He paused, glancing over his shoulder.

"Yes?"

"Thanks for being so… casual, I guess. About this. I know I'm not the best with feelings and stuff, so I don't really like talking about it, but… I'm glad that you were able to tell me. I don't know how I feel, but like you said, when I do, I'll let you know. Is… that okay?" He asked uncertainly.

She stared at him for a moment.

He was really trying, she realized. Maybe he didn't _get_ romantic feelings, but he knew they were important to her, and he was trying, for her sake.

"That's perfect," she smiled, feeling like a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders. It wasn't the answer she had truly wanted from him, but it was a good answer that she respected.

She had waited a long time to tell him. She could wait to let him figure things out.

Falling into step beside him, they walked back to the room in a comfortable silence, and exchanged soft 'good night's before getting back into their beds. She saw Pikachu curl up on his stomach out of the corner of her eye, felt Tairenar, Yancham, and Nymphia getting comfortable sprawled over her legs and under her arm.

Giving each of them a gentle pat, she closed her eyes.

So maybe she hadn't been ready to beat Elle and become Kalos Queen, or go with Yashio-san to train. But she had proven that she could have the courage to confront the feelings that had so often controlled her. Tonight, she realized, she had done yet another impossible thing. She'd confessed to the boy she liked, and even been able to keep the pressure off of him. He would tell her in his own time, in his own way. And until then, she could wait.

Content, she carefully adjusted her injured hand, and relaxed. In the morning, they would have a late and rushed start to their next destination. She would look at Satoshi and he would meet her gaze and blush, but they would exchange 'good morning's like normal. Eureka would gasp and try to get her alone for gossip, and Citron would have no idea what for.

But for now, she let sleep take her into a dream world where nothing was different.

Nothing was different because she was already happy with how things were.


End file.
